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Khaibit
Khaibit Do not threaten my master. You rule from the shadows. I am the shadows. ' ' The ancient Khaibit bloodline is dying out. This Mekhet offshoot seems to have lost its reason for existence. Traditionally, members of the lineage have served blood magicians in the Circle of the Crone. A Khaibit procures victims for his master to feed upon, manages her worldly affairs and generally frees her to concentrate on her mystical research. When necessary, a Khaibit also serves as bodyguard, thief or even assassin. A Khaibit’s favored Disciplines make him an excellent guard: Auspex to notice a danger, Celerity to react quickly and Vigor to strike hard, replacing the Mekhet’s usual penchant for concealment. Khaibit also carry an aptitude for a rare Discipline, generally believed to be the line’s invention long, long ago. Other Kindred call the Mekhet “Shadows,” but the Khaibit can develop actual power over darkness. Indeed, their power to evoke, shape and become darkness led to the bloodline’s name — the ancient Egyptian word for “shadow.” Now, however, few people accept eternal service to another, living or undead. Old Khaibit seldom find childer willing to carry on the bloodline’s traditional role. Young Khaibit refuse to serve and sometimes join covenants other than the Circle. Disgusted sires may refuse to initiate such “disobedient” neonates into the bloodline’s power, or elect to teach childer who awaken Khaibit blood on their own. Increasing numbers of Kindred think of line members simply as “Mekhet with shadow powers.” Indeed, many young Khaibit see themselves that way. Very few neonates ever learn their bloodline’s true, original purpose. Then again, few elders remember it, either. The Khaibit were not always “undead butlers.” The lineage’s true history is hidden by time and geography. Long ago, Mekhet vampires led a secret cult dedicated to Set, the Egyptian god of war, desert, chaos and darkness. Some Mekhet also became warriors of the cult. Their symbol was the asp — a silent, deadly killer, and one of Set’s totem animals. As Christianity spread, the Cult of Set declined, even among the undead. By A.D. 1000, the Dark God’s cult was nearly extinct. Tonight, some Khaibit protect the few ancient Kindred who still revere the Dark God, and tend to the cult’s long-hidden subterranean temples. They also protect other ancient sites that the world has forgotten. On rare occasions, they travel in order to recover artifacts of the cult and other potent magical relics. Most of the bloodline, however, abandoned their duty with the Cult of Set’s demise. Remnants of the group joined the Circle of the Crone and brought many other Khaibit with them. Over the centuries, the line became procurers and valets, leg-breakers and guards, a veritable emotional compensation for the higher duties their blood once demanded, but which were lost. The ancient Egyptians regarded Set as a dangerous, frightening and evil god… but it took a fearsome god to protect the world against yet darker powers. The Sun God could not rise every morning without Set to battle Apep, the primordial serpent-demon of darkness. Set kept the demons in the Netherworld, where they belonged. The “Asps” aided Set’s work. They walked shadowy places where other Kindred feared to go, and made darkness their servant. They fought entities from beyond death and before time began, creatures that would have destroyed Creation or remade it to suit their own malignant desires. Some Khaibit still maintain their ancient duty, watching gates that must remain closed, and hunting the servants of the Eldest Powers. Few of them remain, however. So few to keep the sun rising, a sun they can never see themselves. Parent Clan: Mekhet Nickname: Asps (ancient role), servants (modern role) Covenant In the last thousand years, the Khaibit have served the Circle of the Crone almost exclusively. More than half the bloodline sticks by this old bond. Indeed, some Asps have become competent blood magicians in their own right, instead of merely serving them. In the last two centuries, some Asps took service among the Invictus, the Ordo Dracul or to a much lesser degree the Lancea Sanctum and Carthians. Now, Khaibit who don’t know or care about tradition join whatever covenant suits their personalities or goals. Appearance As with the parent clan, there’s no such thing as a typical Khaibit. Line members can be male or female, young or old (in mortal appearance, anyway), or of any race. Asps dress to blend in with the kine around them. Those who fulfill roles as Retainers often prefer their clothes either loose-fitting or carefully tailored to hide protective armor or amulets. Haven Khaibit who serve as Retainers do not possess havens of their own. They dwell with their masters. Asps who serve as Creation’s unseen defenders keep their havens well hidden, and often underground. These dwellings tend to be small and bare, since a line member may need to abandon it if it’s compromised. The Khaibit who protect the Cult of Set’s long hidden fanes in Egypt (see below) dwell in cabal temples. These magnificent subterranean complexes include shrines, dormitories for Asps’ mortal servants and vessels, training arenas, libraries of ancient lore, and vaults full of salvaged artifacts of the Cult of Set. Background The Khaibit look for potential childer who share their ethos of respect and support. They typically Embrace mortals who already serve a master or some allied Kindred. Tradition holds that a prospective Asp should first honor his sire and his sire’s master as a ghoul, learning the skills needed to serve and protect. Modern Khaibit often forego this requirement, along with the rest of the bloodline’s calling, siring whomever is useful. These rogues are in for a surprise if the bloodline’s past ever catches up with them: Some Khaibit ancient enemies remember the bloodline and still hold a grudge. The few Asps who carry on the ancient duty of guarding the world from ghosts, demons and worse things were often mortals who fought the supernatural, or who were victimized by it. The Khaibit do not always ask such a prospective childe’s permission before Embracing him. When a neonate is simply taken, a sire spends at least seven years training and indoctrinating the childe. Character Creation The majority of line members who serve as mercenaries or agents got other vampires typically offer a forte that’s most useful to a master or employer. A Kindred who seeks a bodyguard and protector typically needs an Asp with primarily Physical traits. Someone who needs an assistant or proxy makes Mental or Social traits a criteria. A character’s relative strengths and weaknesses can therefore suggest the type of role he might play as an agent-for-hire. Appropriate Physical, Mental and Social Merits only further specialize a Khaibit’s appointed role. Expertise in fighting styles, sense for the supernatural or relationships in mortal affairs makes a servant all the more useful in a particular regard. A Khaibit Embraced to the world’s defenders ultimately seeks as much balance as possible among Attributes and Skills. While Physical Attributes might be primary at character creation, Physical Skills might be tertiary, for example. Such well-rounded capabilities are called for since no supernatural being that threatens to invade the world can be defeated in only one way. It takes all of a defender’s faculties to prevail. If a character is initiated directly into the line shortly after the Embrace, an extra dot of Blood Potency is required. Bloodline Disciplines Auspex, Celerity, Obtenebration, Vigor Weakness The Khaibit retain the same weakness as their Mekhet forebears. Whenever Asps suffer damage from sunlight or fire, they take an additional point of aggravated damage from that source. Their affinity with darkness also renders Khaibit less able to resist an instinctive fear of sunlight, anything that burns like sunlight, or anything that could be mistaken for sunlight. As a result, a character suffers a –2 penalty on rolls to resist Rötschreck (fear frenzy) in regard to light. Organization Those Asps who still protect the relics of Set’s cult and who hunt monsters form tiny, cult-like, militant coteries that protect torpid members, record their rule, and preserve their traditions through the centuries. Most Khaibit, however, never meet any other Asps other than their own subservient sires and broodmates. Concepts Bodyguard, valet, detective, assassin, modern knight, Hound, business manager, vengeful ronin, Lupine-hunter, hospice night manager, personal trainer Known Khaibit' History For most Khaibit, their bloodline lacks any history beyond the personal. A member may learn the background of his sire and sire’s sire, but that’s all. The problem is like that of writing a history of the English monarchy’s butlers. For centuries, no one thought the people or their experiences were worth recording. When Khaibit appear in chronicles and legends of the Damned, they usually do so as the lackeys — loyal, treacherous or victimized — of more famous Circle of the Crone members. ' Legendary Origins The Khaibit emerged from the Mekhet so long ago that history has passed into legend, and few now remember even the legend. Asps who want to hear stories about their bloodline’s origins must seek the most erudite loremasters of the undead, or find one of the tiny, long-isolated Khaibit coteries that still guards a site of mystic power. What’s more, a dedicated investigator discovers multiple stories, not one. Each legend may contain bits of history, but not even the coteries that claim to preserve the ancient ways can tell which details are fact and which are fancy. Tales of the ancient Khaibit and Cult of Set drip with romance. Even vampires who know they are not the world’s only supernatural denizens cannot believe these legends of gods, ghosts, wizards, were-creatures and otherworlds. ' The Cult of Set Legends cannot assign a beginning to the Cult of Set. Crumbling scrolls and moldering tomes say the Egyptian god Set founded the group himself before history began, making it the first “covenant” of Kindred. These purported histories do not mention any events earlier than Hellenistic times, though, and even those stories may be fabrications. (No one has ever scientifically dated any of these manuscripts, which may be copies made later.) The most consistent myths say the cult existed to protect the world from perils far worse than vampires. The Damned had to dwell in the world and needed live humans to sustain them. Other creatures did not. The warriors of Set therefore fought evil and powerful ghosts that wanted to drag the living into the world of death. They hunted malignant cults and crazed enchanters who served gods of madness, destruction and oblivion. They battled spirits and monsters from beyond the stars and below the depths of Hell. Things so foul and alien that their very presence warped and eroded reality. The cult’s greatest strength lay in its homeland of Egypt. After Rome conquered Egypt, the cult spread throughout the Mediterranean world and the Middle East. The scrolls and inscriptions in the cult’s long-lost temples say that Set’s paladins of the night saved the world (or at least provinces) many times. Entertaining stories, if one can believe any Kindred could act so selflessly. ' Dark Power The lost myths of the Khaibit ascribe the bloodline’s genesis to contact with various spiritual or magical forces. The simplest story merely says the god Set gave the lineage’s first members their command over shadow. He supposedly gave that gift so the Khaibit could penetrate the deepest darkness, even unto the deathly realms where light could not shine, and to fight creatures that were shadows themselves. Another story ties the line’s Obtenebration power to the blood of a god. In this romantic myth, a mortal coven summoned Seker, the god who ruled the deepest region of Duat, the Egyptian underworld. Seker sought to bring all Egypt into his realm. Three cunning and mighty Mekhet warriors forced the death-god to return to Duat. They tasted the god’s spilled blood, conferring upon them a measure of dark, divine power. A variation on the same story says a Mekhet warrior fought an enchanter who served Seker. The sorcerer called on Seker’s darkness to destroy the Mekhet. As shadows curdled around the vampire, however, he seized the enchanter and sank his fangs into the mortal. When the shadows dispersed, the enchanter was gone and the Mekhet’s blood had changed. A quite different story says the Khaibit began with the efforts of a great Mekhet sorceress. This blood-witch conjured water from the River of Death that flowed through Duat. She chose the three greatest mortal warriors who served the Cult of Set and gave them the water to drink along with their Embrace. The Water of Death changed the childers’ Vitae, making them the first Asps. Other myths present minor variations on these stories. Sometimes three Mekhet become the first line members (or sometimes seven, or only one). Instead of Seker’s divine blood, supernatural identity comes from feeding on a demon, a ghost or a Nameless Thing. Instead of an undead sorcerer, a mortal mage enchants the founder and changes his blood. Instead of the power coming as Set’s gift, the nascent Khaibit steal the secret of Obtenebration from Seker or learn it from Thoth, the god of magic. After more than 2,000 years, the truth probably doesn’t matter. ' Segue to Servants Legends about the Cult of Set describe a number of conflicts with ancient covenants. The Camarilla is now the best known of these elder groups. The cult did not disappear because of war with another sect, however. The Egyptian gods simply went out of fashion. By A.D. 200, Egypt was firmly Christian. By 400, Christianity was the official faith of the Roman Empire. Never mind finding childer who still worshipped the Egyptian gods. The Cult of Set had increasing difficulty finding recruits who could treat Set as anything but a fable from pagan times. The Cult of Set was never officially destroyed. It simply withered away. Remaining members joined the Camarilla (assuming that elder covenant was not mythical itself). From the Camarilla, the cult’s mystical secrets passed to the nascent Circle of the Crone. Like the cult, its enemies seem to have declined as well.Perhaps the ghosts, demons and nameless horrors found it more difficult to invade the material world. Perhaps their depredations simply weren’t recorded in the chaos and ignorance that followed Rome’s decline and collapse. Whatever the truth of the matter, the fading sect ceased to chronicle epic battles against its otherworldly foes. The Khaibit followed other Cult of Set members into the Circle of the Crone. And yet that group bestowed its greatest honor unto blood magicians, not warriors. The Khaibit continued to fight enemies of the old cult, such as Lupines and hostile vampires, but they fought at the blood-sorcerers’ command. Gradually, the bloodline shifted from a lineage of shadow warriors to a lineage of bodyguards and minions. Khaibit seldom appear as the protagonists of Circle history or legends. As magic slipped from the world and the covenants established their new balance of power, the bloodline’s martial prowess became steadily less important. Now, even the warriors’ tradition of service is a quaint anachronism. Nobody really needs the Khaibit anymore. At least, they won’t until the gates to the Other open again, and the spectral enemies return. ' '''Society and Culture At least half of all Khaibit serve other Kindred. As far as other Damned are concerned, their servants are a bloodline of just that. The Khaibit receive some respect for their capabilities, especially those who are masters of Obtenebration who can take the form of a shadow. Many Kindred would be astonished to learn that the Asps once defended the world from unholy forces. Most Kindred wouldn’t care, though. What could an ancient fight against ghosts and demons matter now? ' An Unlife of Service Even if a Khaibit chooses not to follow his line’s tradition of service, many do. The lineage’s historic role influences who becomes a Khaibit, why, and how other Kindred treat members. ' '''Retainers and Retainees A Khaibit character might serve another vampire, or even another player’s character. Playing a Retainer deserves special discussion. As a supernatural creature, a Khaibit is a five dot Retainer. If the Khaibit’s master is a Storyteller controlled character, this cost doesn’t matter much. Supporting cast members have as many dots to spend as the Storyteller wants. Of more practical importance, the Khaibit player must buy the character’s employer as a Mentor. As usual, the master’s value as a Merit depends on her power and willingness to help the character. A Circle Hierophant who treats the servant as a valued agent costs five dots. The Hierophant’s spoiled childe who treats her Khaibit bodyguard as a slave costs only one. What if a Khaibit’s master is another player’s character? In this case, the players themselves work out the relationship, and the Storyteller decides how to represent it in terms of Retainer and Mentor. If the players decide their characters are master and servant in name only, and actually treat each other as equals, neither needs to buy a Merit. If the master intends to exercise real authority over the Khaibit, and the servant feels some obligation to obey, players must buy suitable Merits for their characters. ' 'Employers Most Khaibit work for prestigious and powerful members of the Circle of the Crone. In some cities, a Khaibit majordomo is a badge of honor for an Acolyte. In such cities, some Kindred may retain at least a subconscious awareness of the bloodline’s ancient purpose. Master magicians know that when a Crúac experiment goes wrong, it’s good to have a Khaibit on hand to deal with whatever arrives in response. A few practitioners of Theban Sorcery or other blood magic seek Asps as well. The desire to co-opt anything the competition values brings Khaibit into the Lancea Sanctum and Ordo Dracul, not to mention among the Unaligned. Some Invictus elders (and those of other covenants to a lesser degree) also seek Khaibit servants. These employers don’t care about blood magic, but they like the idea of a servant as eternal as themselves. Not many Kindred ever accept an eternal unlife of servitude; the Khaibit offer it as their raison d’être. One could always keep a few ghoul retainers, of course, but some elders prefer a servant who doesn’t crumble to dust if you forget to feed him personally and on schedule. A ghoul’s emotional dependence on his regnant also irritates some elders who prefer a cool, professional relationship with an agent. A Khaibit’s employer is not necessarily some moldering elder who tries to uphold the customs of centuries past. Some sires believe their childer deserve perpetual lackeys of their own. The vampire sires a childe, and the elder orders her Khaibit minion to sire one as well. On rare occasions, parallel lineages of Khaibit and members of another clan may be traced back for generations. Most often, a vampire simply hires a Khaibit. Once upon a time, Asps swore oaths to serve their masters. Sometimes an Asp had to accept a blood bond to seal the contract. Very few Princes enforce this tradition anymore (or even know about it). If no Khaibit look for work, a vampire might strike a deal with an Asp’s master. In return for some boon, the master orders his servant to sire and train a childe. Of course, a vampire can also approach a Khaibit and simply try to lure him away from his current master. In some cities, a Khaibit servant comes as part of an office. A leading Acolyte may receive a Khaibit servant along with his appointment as Hierophant. Primogen or Prisci may receive a Khaibit’s service as well. This happens most often among the Mekhet, but can occur for leaders of other clans, too. ' Making of a Khaibit A century ago, Khaibit had no problem finding prospective childer. A sizeable portion of the kine population still lived as some kind of servant, especially in Europe. Mortals would not rebel against the notion of serving one master forever. Now, matters are very different. Even a professional butler or live-in valet thinks of himself as a contractor, not a retainer. He provides a service, not servility. Some employers and Khaibit sires accept this change in social attitude. They seek childer among mortals who possess valued talents: professional bodyguards or security guards, secretaries or business managers. Other Asps look for prospects with an emotional need to serve. Nurses, people who have spent years caring for sickly relatives, employees at non-profit and charitable organizations, and all sorts of volunteer workers attract their attention. Quite often, a would-be sire finds a childe among immigrants from the Third World. A Guatemalan au pair or Nigerian waiter may lack the talents to assist a blood magician or to defend a Primogen, but he or she is willing to serve. Knowledge can come later, and the Damned have plenty of time for training. Sometimes a sire tells a prospective childe she has a job offer with unusual opportunities. Only later does the mortal learn that her “job” requires the Embrace. Other times, a sire merely Embraces a mortal, tells her she can’t go back to her old life, and gives her a choice between service and destruction. (Such childer quite understandably show little loyalty to their sires or masters.) Some Asps prefer to blood bond a mortal and train her for several years before delivering the Embrace. When a would-be master contracts for a Khaibit childe, the master may blood bond and train the mortal instead. An Asp sire supplies the Embrace, but may have no other contact with his own childe. ' '''Duties A Khaibit’s master defines the extent of his agent’s duties. Common roles include: • Assistant: Khaibit who serve a blood magician often learn something about their master’s dark arts, so they can prepare materials and contribute to rituals. (Such an assistant is traditionally called a famulus.) Just as important, a good assistant knows when not to intrude on a mystic rite. • Bodyguard: An Asp is often expected to protect his master from her enemies, whether they be mortal witch-hunters, marauding werewolves or rival vampires. • Crime: In addition to defending his master, an Asp might attack his master’s enemies. Experienced Khaibit become very good at slipping into a location, administering violence and slipping out again. An agent’s master may also send him to spy on mortals or Kindred opponents, or to steal items needed for rituals (or just items the master wants). Requesting (or demanding) such tasks requires a certain degree of loyalty in a servant, of course. • General Factotum: An elder might spend time scheming against rivals and not worry about the trivialities of her Requiem, while a blood magician might not want to take time from research to manage his household or connections to the mortal world. A Khaibit Retainer might serve as secretary, chief of staff overseeing mortal servants, or business manager, in addition to any other duties. • Hunter: A blood magician trying to devise a new ritual doesn’t want to waste time seeking sustenance. Instead, she can send her servant to bring her a vessel. Afterward, the agent can make sure the mortal doesn’t know what happened — or if it comes to it, dispose of the body. All in all, a Khaibit servant can find his unlife as exciting and unpredictable as any other vampire’s. One night, he delivers a bribe to a city councilman. The next, he sneaks into the Primogen council as a shadowy spy. The night after that, he defends his master against an out-of-control demon. On top of this, a modern Khaibit can also find whatever personal interests and entanglements he chooses… or that choose him. ' ' Terms of Service Modern Khaibit expect something in return for an unlife of dedication. Many receive a straightforward salary. Like mortal cooks and housekeepers, line members often demand and receive regular nights off duty. A Khaibit (or any similar Kindred Retainer) receives a traditional privilege to hunt in his master’s territory, or to feed from her herd. He may also dwell in his master’s haven. In fact, that’s usually part of his duties. Princes often extend a limited immunity to Khaibit or other Kindred Retainers. If a Khaibit commits an offense against other undead at his master’s behest, the master bears the responsibility. Of course, that assumes anyone can prove the master gave the order… or that the master is not too powerful or too valued an ally to make prosecution a solution. A Khaibit who becomes the fall guy for his master, and other Kindred know the truth, may suffer lighter punishment than another vampire would (at least in some cities). Such dispensation of a servant usually ends the Khaibit’s service, though, unless the master has some other hold on his Retainer, such as a Vinculum or a threat to mortal loved ones. Unfortunately, some elders don’t realize that modern servants are not willing to fall on their swords for their masters’ sake. Modern Khaibit can strike back at treacherous employers and teach other Kindred to fear the shadows. ' 'Shadow Warriors A fraction of the Khaibit bloodline does not serve other Kindred or operate as “Mekhet with shadow powers.” These few secretly preserve the bloodline’s ancient duty as the world’s guardians. Some of these Asps tend the last, long-hidden shrines to Set, or guard weak points in reality where Things From Beyond can break through. Most of the Cult of Set’s so-called fanes are located in Egypt, but a few secret shrines survive in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. These temples hold the cult’s records, written on papyrus and parchment scrolls, or inscribed on the walls in classic Egyptian fashion. Anyone who finds one of these shrines learns a great deal about the Kindred of the ancient world. How much of what they learn is true is open to conjecture. Members of the Cult of Set were just as likely as any modern Kindred to misremember the past after a long torpor, and to rewrite history to serve their own interests. More importantly, fanes are treasure-troves of elder magic. The Cult of Set practiced a form of Crúac based on Egyptian ritual magic, concentrating on the use of wax or clay images, hieroglyphic inscriptions, blood offerings, and invocations to Egyptian gods. Any vampire who could retrieve such ancient lore would win great fame in the Circle of the Crone and the Ordo Dracul. (The Sanctified might seek to destroy this “pagan” sorcery, though you never know. Power is power.) The shrines also hold items that ancient cultists regarded as magical. Perhaps some of them still retain their power. Exorcistic sand from the deserts of Duat, blades enchanted to kill spirits, amulets to protect against possession, Dominate or fire — it’s anyone’s guess what wonders a fane might hide. A few other Khaibit keep watch over places where ghosts, demons and stranger things once erupted into the world, and where they might break through again. Sometimes mages in search of knowledge or power deliberately open gates to realms beyond. Khaibit guards make sure no one else foolishly dares these portals, and watch for dark things that slip through. Every century, one or two Khaibit discover their historic role and accept their duty. If they among the undead don’t protect the world, who will? Typically, a small group of Khaibit (or other vampires descended from Cult of Set members) guards each post. Some members lie in torpor while others remain active. If a member suffers Final Death, the others look for a mortal they can Embrace and train to join them. When a shrine or breach-point is far from a major city, the Khaibit might assemble a blood cult of mortals to serve as their herd and additional guards. Some of these little cults have persisted for centuries. Guardian-coteries don’t usually know about each other. Each believes its members are the last to keep the old ways. They have simply lost track of each other over the ages. At most, a coterie might know of one other guard post, thanks to sending mortal allies in search of other lost shrines or breaches. On very rare occasions, Khaibit risk their unlives in quests to retrieve mystic artifacts or to stop spiritual invasions. These Asps seek relics of the Cult of Set for practical and cultural reasons. A ceremonial rod from the old cult might bear some useful enchantment. It might also set mortal archeologists to asking dangerous questions. No Kindred wants the kine learning about ancient cults supposedly led by vampires. Rumors of curses or hauntings may also lead an Asp to seek items or places where outsiders invade the world. If a Khaibit finds such an object or place, he cleanses it or takes it back to his shrine for safekeeping. Discovering a new portal in the world may prompt an Asp to stay and sire a new brood of guards. ' Discovering Heritage Any vampire might serve as another Kindred’s Retainer. The Khaibit stand out because of their secret heritage. You can play a Khaibit without ever bringing in that demon-hunting background, but that background is what makes an Asp more than just a vampire with shadow powers. Most players know a lot more about the World of Darkness than their characters do. The Khaibit just push that distinction a little further. Part of the fun of playing an Asp lies in discovering the character’s heritage as a shadow-warrior. You and the Storyteller may conspire to build a story arc around the discovery, and how your Asp responds to the knowledge that she has a rare power to fight spiritual foes. Does she accept her power and destiny? Does she try to avoid her duty? How do other Kindred — especially a Khaibit’s master —react when they learn the truth? ' Threat Revealed If a Storyteller wants to incorporate Khaibit heritage into her chronicle, she needs to establish a danger that Asps are uniquely qualified to fight. Perhaps Kindred come under attack by incorporeal spirits. Maybe vengeful ghosts possess a coterie that lairs in an old mausoleum. A bungled (or successful…) experiment in blood magic could release shadow-creatures that feed on vampires the way vampires feed on mortals. Workers digging the foundations for a new skyscraper could break open a long-sealed and buried portal to a nether-realm. There’s no shortage of possibilities. Next, a Khaibit needs some reason to believe he can do something abou t such a problem. The easiest way is to have some knowledgeable Kindred say so. Very few vampires know Khaibit ancient history. What luck that one of them dwells in the city! Or a Khaibit from a guard-post coterie might arrive and ask the charactervto help deal with a problem. For a less blatant approach, an Asp character might receive clues when he uses Obtenebration. He could see a spirit while using Night Sight in total darkness and realize that he can see things that other vampires can’t. Maybe those invisible, incorporeal creatures have some connection to the strange events that so frighten the Kindred community? A Khaibit who has mastered Shadow Form can even touch spirits. An Asp conducting an errand in shadow form might encounter a ghost or demon by chance, suffer an attack, and discover that he can fight an enemy whom no one else can see or strike. Or a spiritual foe might seek out a Khaibit. Kindred have forgotten the Asps’ role in expelling evil spirits from the world, but otherworldly beings have not. The Khaibit is the antagonist’s first target, which gives any “sensibly” paranoid vampire a clue that someone considers him a special threat. But why? ' In Search of Lost Secrets Once a Khaibit realizes Obtenebration makes her unusually qualified to deal with spirit foes, what does she do about it? She may try to avoid the situation, of course. Once other Kindred learn of her power, that probably ceases to be an option. Vampires want protection against the invisible, intangible menace, and put pressure on the Asp to defend them. Whether the character selflessly accepts or extorts every concession she can is her choice. The Khaibit quickly realizes that she needs to know more. What is the enemy? How can she fight it most effectively? Have other Khaibit done this before? Is the ancient connection between the line and the Circle of the Crone mere coincidence? Does Obtenebration offer greater powers that are perfectly suited to fighting spirits? When a character learns everything local vampires know about the lineage’s past (which is not much), she can seek information elsewhere. Local Acolytes can contact savants in other cities. The Asp can offer favors in return for information, or even ask for a letter of introduction so she can ask questions in person. A coterie may travel more safely than a lone vampire, so all characters can embark on a thrilling journey and see how the Kindred govern themselves in another city. Then again, a character might tap non-vampiric sources of information. Masters of Crúac or Theban Sorcery might be able to summon oracular spirits to answer questions. Naturally, such covenant members demand favors in return, which can hook an Asp and her coterie into further stories. Ultimately, a line member might find a long-hidden, guard-post coterie and discover her “deathright.” If players want to make Khaibit heritage a major story arc, the coterie might travel all the way to Egypt. (Perhaps with the help of a Rakshasa smuggler? See that bloodline’s description.) This would be a quest worthy of an ancient Khaibit champion. ' Dark Heroes A Khaibit who battles for the sake of the world receives no gratitude from mortals (they can never know a fight took place), and very little from her fellow Kindred. Some vampires surely try to exploit a spiritual threat for their own ends. Never mind the danger to the world, as long as they can use the crisis to discredit their rivals! Such Kindred might oppose a would-be shadow warrior, because they don’t want the danger to end on any terms but their own. Other vampires could simply loathe the thought of a servant gaining such power and influence. Still others try to make a Khaibit their own servant, so they can extort favors from other Kindred. In the end, saving the world from nether horrors may be easier than finding a reason to save it at all. ' '''Obtenebration The Khaibit trademark Discipline deals with darkness and shadow, the natural habitat of creatures slain by sunlight. Obtenebration enables its possessor to act more easily in darkness, alter and generate shadows, and to even become a shadow himself. The Discipline has little effect on solid objects, so it requires some ingenuity to use. Obtenebration is as old as the Khaibit themselves. Over the centuries, plenty of Kindred have had opportunity to learn it. The Discipline remains largely confined to the Khaibit, however, since most Kindred don’t see much use for Obtenebration’s basic powers. It’s easier to hire a Khaibit spy who can turn into a shadow than to spend years mastering the Discipline so you can turn into a shadow yourself. • Night Sight '''A student of Obtenebration first learns how to see in total darkness. Vampires innately see better than mortals do but Night Sight enables Kindred to see without any light at all. The fainter any ambient light, the stranger the world looks through Night Sight. Under moonlight or equivalent illumination, a user can see as well as he can in a well-lit room with normal color vision. By starlight, colors fade to leave shades of silver and gray. In complete darkness, a vampire sees different shades of black — ebony, jet, sable and hundreds more than mortal language can name, each with its own tint and texture. While using Night Sight, a Kindred’s pupils expand until her eyes are completely black. Cost: 1 Vitae Dice Pool: This power requires no roll Action: Reflexive The player simply activates the power and explains to the Storyteller what his character does. The vampire suffers no penalties for acting in darkness. He can still be blinded by other means, though. Night Sight does not counteract visual impairment caused by tear gas or the opacity of a dense fog, for example. Nor does it help when a vampire’s eyes have been removed! The effect lasts for the remainder of a scene. When in complete darkness, a vampire using Night Sight gains one additional minor power: She can see invisible and incorporeal entities such as unmanifested ghosts (World of Darkness Rulebook, p. 208). The slightest hint of light blocks this application of Night Sight.' •• Shadow Play The user can manipulate shadows that already exist. They can grow, shrink, fade or intensify, change shape or even detach form the objects that cast them and move about. In dark surroundings, the vampire can create whatever shadowy images she wants. All these images remain shadows, though. A person who can see clearly could never mistake figures created through Shadow Play for anything solid or real. (Although, seeing one’s own shadow reach out to strangle the shadow of another person could prove quite disturbing.) Cost: 1 Vitae Dice Pool: Wits + Intimidation + Obtenebration Action: Instant Roll Results Dramatic Failure: The character fails to manipulate a shadow and cannot use this power again until the next sunset. Failure: The character cannot manipulate shadows with this attempt, but a successive attempt may be made if another Vitae is spent. Success: The character can alter shadows cast in a 16-square-yard area, but he may locate that area anywhere within line of sight. The zone of Shadow Play can itself be moved as a reflexive action, if the user so desires. Exceptional Success: As per a normal success, except the area affected can be up to 25 square yards in size. Shadows can be manipulated for the remainder of the scene, their activities or behavior being modified by the user as a reflexive action. No more than one use of the power may be active at a time. Thus, shadows in two separate areas cannot be affected simultaneously. The user may leave shadows alone whenever he desires. They return to normal if he is knocked unconscious, sent into torpor, destroyed, if he leaves them alone or if he loses direct line of sight to the area of effect. Suggested Modifiers Modifier Situation — Moving a shadow in a manner different from what the object casting it would suggest or be capable of (making the shadow of a statue dance, for example) –1 Causing an object to cast a shadow unlike what its physical shape would suggest –3 Truly complicated Shadow Plays, such as detaching a shadow from its host or making it undertake elaborate or wholly unnatural actions '••• Shroud of Night As a student of Obtenebration gains skill, he can generate his own darkness to conceal his deeds, to frighten victims or to animate through Shadow Play. Shroud of Night swallows and suppresses light, so a Kindred could darken a brightly lit room to dim twilight, or spread utter darkness throughout a city street at night. Electric lights still work and fires still burn, but they fade and their light doesn’t cast the way it should. So, a 100-watt bulb shines no brighter than a candle. Shroud of Night provides no protection from sunlight. The sun’s direct light instantly burns away such eldritch shadows. Cost: 1 Vitae Dice Pool: Intelligence + Crafts + Obtenebration Action: Instant Roll Results Dramatic Failure: The character fails to create shadow and cannot use this power again until the next sunset. Failure: The character is unable to manipulate shadows with this attempt, but a successive attempt may be made if another Vitae is spent Success: The character can darken an area of about 16 square yards (a room) for a scene. Exceptional Success: As per a normal success, except each success at five and over multiplies the maximum possible area by three. So, five successes darken a 48-square-yard area (3 x 16), and seven successes affect a 144-square-yard area (9 x 16). The degree of darkness that can be achieved depends on the starting illumination. Starting Illumination Limit of Darkness Bright as day (but not real sunlight) Shadowy, dim light Well-lit room Twilight “blue o’clock” Poorly lit room Moonlight equivalent Twilight or well-lit city street Starlight equivalent Moonlight or poorly lit city street Complete darkness The user does not need to reduce lighting as much as the power allows. He could dim a well-lit room merely to poorly lit, instead of going all the way to twilight. Darkness persists until the remainder of the scene, unless the effect is dispelled early. Brighter light sources introduced once the power is in effect may increase ambient light. The user may dispel darkness whenever he desires, and it fades completely if he is knocked unconscious, sent into torpor or destroyed. Only one area may be affected by darkness at a time. The user need not be in the area affected. He can dim an area at a range as long as he has direct line of sight to that area. If line of sight is ever broken, normal light returns. Suggested Modifiers Modifier Situation Moonlight or poorly lit city street +2 Twilight or well-lit city street +1 Poorly lit room — Well-lit room –1 Bright as day (but not real sunlight) –3 '•••• Perambulam in Tenebris An expert practitioner of Obtenebration can step into one shadow and step out of another instantly. This power enables a character to travel very quickly, but only for limited distances. Cost: 1 Vitae Dice Pool: This power involves no roll Action: Instant The character merely needs to see the shadow where he wants to emerge. (Direct line of sight is required; seeing the spot on TV does not qualify.) The distance between shadows does not count toward the distance the character can move in a turn based on his Speed. So, if he travels his Speed to enter a shadow and dedicates the turn’s action to using this power, he emerges in the other shadow all in the same action. Clothes and objects that can be carried in one hand can travel with a vampire, but other people and objects that require two hands cannot. Suggested Modifiers Modifier Situation Moonlight or poorly lit city street +2 Twilight or well-lit city street +1 Poorly lit room — Well-lit room –1 Bright as day (but not real sunlight) –3 ''••••• Shadow Form A master of Obtenebration can literally become a shadow. In this form, a character can slide across walls, through a crack under a door or through a window without breaking the glass. No physical force can harm her because she isn’t solid. She looks just like a shadow of herself (and can use Shadow Play separately to make herself even harder to recognize). The character can also “peel” herself off the floor, wall or ceiling to assume a three-dimensional form of semi-transparent darkness, but doing so demands great concentration. Cost: 1 Vitae Dice Pool: Wits + Subterfuge + Obtenebration Action: Instant Roll Results Dramatic Failure: The character does not become a shadow of herself, but rather “roots” her shadow self to some object in her vicinity, becoming its “shadow” until the scene ends or until a Willpower point is spent as a reflexive action to free herself. Shadow Play can still be used in “trapped” shadow form. Failure: The character is unable to transubstantiate herself into shadow, but another attempt may be made in a subsequent turn if another Vitae is spent. Success: The character becomes a shadow-like form, with all of the benefits and only some of the drawbacks. Exceptional Success: As per a standard success, plus a three-dimensional form can be assumed with a Willpower cost. The character becomes a two-dimensional shadow, can move at normal or running Speed, and can defy gravity, but must always move across a surface such as the ground, a wall or a ceiling. She can pass through any object which a shadow could be cast through, such as a window, a paper wall or a mesh screen. She cannot exist as a free-standing, two-dimensional shadow. The character is a shadow-like ephemeral form, existing in the material world but intangible. This state is not unlike that of a ghost anchored to the physical world (a state called “Twilight”) — in fact, a character in Twilight can interact normally only with other creatures in Twilight. She cannot speak or affect anything physically. Punches, bullets, mundane fire and other material attacks cannot harm the shadow-like form of the vampire any more than they could damage a normal shadow. Sunlight, however, remains deadly. If an exceptional success is rolled when the power is activated, the character can choose to become a freestanding, three-dimensional figure of darkness with visible eyes (whether they appear as flesh, as pinpricks of light or as holes in the shadow is up to the character), but doing so requires significant concentration. (One Willpower point must be spent as a reflexive action; it does not confer a +3 bonus to any roll.) In this form, the character can speak normally into the material world and make use of her other Obtenebration powers. She is still considered an ephemeral form in the state of Twilight, however, and cannot otherwise interact with material things. A vampire in either kind of Shadow Form cannot use any other Disciplines against material targets. She can, however, use Disciplines against ephemeral targets, such as another vampire in Shadow Form or against a ghost or spirit. Surrounding a character in Shadow Form with light, so that no shadows can exist, forces the vampire to resume corporeal form.